Sliding panel lock

ABSTRACT

A LOCK FOR TRACK MOUNTED, HORIZONTALLY SLIDABLE PANELS, FORMED OF A ONE-PIECE HOUSING HAVING A BOX-LIKE BASE, FOR SECURING TO THE PANEL, WITH AN INTEGRAL OPEN CHANNEL SLIDABLY RECEIVING A SLIDE BOLT, AND A THIN PLATE FITTED WITHIN THE BASE AND HAVING AN INTEGRAL, STRUCK-OUT SPRINGY PORTION ENGAGING THE BOLT FOR FRICTIONALLY HOLDING IT IN PRESET POSITIONS. A KEEPER HAVING A BOLT RECEIVING SOCKET IS SECURED WITHIN THE UPPER CHANNEL SHAPED TRACK, AND RESILIENT TRAPEZOIDAL PRISM SHAPED STOPS ARE FRICTIONALLY HELD WITHIN THE UPPER CHANNEL SHAPED TRACK TO PREVENT UPWARD MOVEMENT OF THE PANEL AND THUS REMOVAL OF THE PANEL FROM THE TRACK.

Oct. 17, 1972 J. DI FAZIO 3,698,883

SLIDING PANEL LOCK Filed April 1, 1971 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG-8 INVENTOR JOSEPH Di FAZIO BYQLMM' 061 4, 554mm ATTORNEYS United States Patent O 3,698,883 SLIDING PANEL LOCK Joseph Di Fazio, Warren, Mich., assignor to Acorn Products Company, Detroit, Mich. Filed Apr. 1, 1971, Ser. No. 130,179 Int. Cl. Ed /08; E05f 5/06; E05c 1/04 US. 01. 49-449 10 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A lock for track mounted, horizontally slidable panels, formed of a one-piece housing having a box-like base, for securing to the panel, with an integral open channel slidably receiving a slide bolt, and a thin plate fitted within the base and having an integral, struck-out springy portion engaging the bolt for frictionally holding it in preset positions. A keeper having a bolt receiving socket is secured within the upper channel shaped track, and resilient trapezoidal prism shaped stops are frictionally held within the upper channel shaped track to prevent upward movement of the panel and thus removal of the panel from the track.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION Large size, framed glass doors, commonly referred to as patio doors, are conventionally supported with their lower edges riding on sill tracks and their upper edges arranged within header channels. Various types of locking devices have been used to prevent opening of these doors, but these usually have been either relatively expensive or alternatively, relatively easy for unauthorized opening.

In addition, with these types of doors commonly used in dwelling homes, entry into the homes can be effected by removal of the doors, merely by lifting them upwardly into the header channels so that the lower edges disengage from the lower tracks wherein the doors may be tilted outwardly and away from their supports. This removal of the panels can be relatively easily done even when conventional locks are used with the panels.

Thus, the invention herein relates to a simple, unusually inexpensive construction lock means which may be easily attached to an edge of a sliding door panel for engagement with an inexpensive keeper secured within the header track, with simple and inexpensive stops arranged above the upper edge of the panel, within the track, to thereby prevent unauthorized opening or removal of the panel.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention herein relates to a lock system for securing sliding panels against unauthorized opening or removal. The system includes a slide-bolt type lock formed of three basic elements, namely, a housing having a base for screw attachment to the panel, and a guide channel which slidably receives a slide bolt. The bolt is held within the channel and frictionally grasped against movement by means of a cover plate, arranged within the base, which is provided with a struck-out springy tongue engaging a face of the slide bolt.

The end of the slide bolt engages a keeper formed of a strip fastened within the header channel and having a central double socket for two position locking, with the strip ends being formed to cam the bolt away from the keeper should it be raised and slid toward the keeper, thus preventing sidewise movement or damage to the lock. The camming or movement of the bolt axially, to prevent damage, is assisted by means of the head of the fastening screw which fastens the keeper in place as well as a guide fin, all of which together shove the slide bolt away from the keeper.

In addition, a resilient, trapezoidal prism, formed of a ice flat, thin, springy sheet of material bent into the aforementioned shape, is force fitted or compressed within the header, above the panel, preventing the panel from being lifted upwardly until such time as the prism is removed.

All of the above described parts, are so shaped that maximum strength is obtained despite these parts being made of inexpensive materials and by inexpensive proc esses, such as by die casting the housing and bolt and forming the keeper of a thin plastic material, etc.

Summarizing, the system provides a means for positively locking the sliding panel, by engaging the bolt with the keeper in one of two positions, and at the same time, prevents the lifting of the panel for disengaging it from the supporting tracks.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent upon reading the following description, of which the attached drawings form a part.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an elevational view, partially in cross-section, of the upper portion of a sliding door panel arranged within its upper channel mounting track, with the locking means fixing the panel against movement.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken as if in the direction of arrow 2-2, but including the lower edge of the panel and sill track.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken as if in the direction of arrows 3--3 showing the lock, the track channel and a portion of the keeper.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of the lock, per

FIG. 5 illustrates a perspective exploded view of the parts forming the lock.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the lock taken as if in the direction of arrows 66 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 7 is an elevational view of the keeper, and

FIG. 8 is a bottom elevational view of the keeper taken in the direction of arrows 88 of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the stop.

FIG. 10 is an end view of the stop, just prior to insertion into the header channel and also showing the stop in position within the header channel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a conventional sliding door panel 10, frequently referred to as a patio door, which essentially consists of one or two glass panes with a surrounding frame. The panel is provided with lower extensions 11 (see FIG. 2) which fit into tracks or grooves 12 on the outer frame sill member 13. The upper edge of the panel is inserted Within a header channel member 14. This channel member is illustrated as having a pair of downwardly opening channels 15 and 16 so as to mount a second sliding or fixed panel, as the case may be, parallel to the first mentioned panel. All of the foregoing is conventional and the details of construction may vary, the same not being relevant to the invention herein.

The lock 18 is secured to an upper corner of the panel 10 (see FIGS. 1-3). It is formed of a one-piece housing 19 made of a box-like base portion 20, arranged vertically so that it opens toward the panel. Integrally formed on the base wall of the box-like base member is an open channel 21 which extends above and below the upper and lower walls of the base member and opens into the box-like base member whose upper and lower walls are gapped or cut open to form upper and lower openings aligned with the channel.

The channel 21 receives the slide bolt 22 which is of a cross-sectional configuration conforming to the approximately rectangular cross-section of the channel for endwise sliding movement.

The upper end 23 of the slide bolt 22 is tapered to more easily fit into a keeper socket and the lower end of the bolt is formed into a gripping handle 24. Both the bolt and the housing may be made of inexpensive die-castings of suitable metal giving the required rigidity.

A fiat, thin plate 25 (see FIGS. 3 and fits into the base member 20, between the walls thereof in face to face contact with the base or forward wall of the member. The plate is secured in place by means of screws 26 passing through holes 27 formed in the plate and aligned with integral bosses 28 formed on the housing and having screw receiving holes 28a fermed therein. The plate is also provided with an upper extension 29 and a lower extension 30 so as to cover the upper and lower exposed portions of the channel opening (see FIG. 3).

A struck-out strip 31 centrally located on the plate 25 forms a forwardly extending springly tongue which is of a width to snugly fit within a vertically elongated groove 32 formed on the adjacent face of the bolt. A similar groove is formed on the opposite face of the bolt so that the bolt may be reversed to place the handle in a reversed position.

The tongue holds the bolt in whatever position it is set manually and prevents it from rattling sideways. FIG. 6 illustrates the arrangement between the tongue 31 and the bolt groove 32.

The housing is provided with screw holes 33 in its base wall through which screws 34 are inserted for threading into the vertical edge of the panel frame.

The upper end of the slide bolt engages with a keeper 35 which may be formed of a suitable molded plastic or diecast material. The keeper (see FIGS. 7-8) comprises a thin, fiat strip 36 whose opposite ends are chamfered or sloped at 37, with a centrally located pair of 'bolt receiving sockets 38-39, each formed in an open box-like shape extending downwardly a distance from the strip 36. The adjacent walls of the two sockets are spaced apart only a short distance so that the upper end of the bolt may not fit between them.

Integral fins 40 having sloping lower surfaces are connected to the sockets and strip. Elongated screw receiving slots 41 are formed in the strip at its opposite ends to receive headed screws 42.

The chamfers or slopes 37 and the heads of the screws 42, plus the fins 40 cooperate together to form a ramp or cam means for camming the bolt downwardly, away from the keeper in the event that the bolt is fully up while it is not within the keeper and the door is slid towards the keeper. In that event, to prevent the bolt from being knocked sideways and thus damaging or breaking either the keeper or the lock, the upper end 23 of the bolt rides the chamfer 37, then over the screw head 42 and then down the slope of the fin 40 until it clears the sockets where it can then be raised to fit into one or another of the sockets 38 and 39.

The keeper is so located that one of the two sockets positions the door in a closed, locked location and the other permits the door to be slightly opened and yet be locked.

The panel doors described above are removable from their outer supporting frames by lifting the panel upwardly so that its lower edge raises off the sill track, while its upper edge more deeply enters into the header, at which point the lower edge is swung outwardly and downwardly to thereby remove the panel from the header. Such type doors can be easily removed from the outside of a dwelling house to gain unauthorized entry.

Thus, to prevent the door from being raised upwardly within the header, when not desired, at least one and preferably two or three stops are positioned within the header channel above the door. These stops normally do not contact the upper edge of the door panel unless the door is raiscd, at Which point further raising is 4 stopped at a point where the lower edge of the door still remains within its track engagement.

The stops are formed in the exterior shape of a trapezoidal prism which is resillent. This shape is obtained by starting with a flat, relatively stiff but somewhat springy plastic sheet which is bent into a trapezoidal shape having a slightly concave upper base 46, sidewalls 47 and a lower base formed of a pair of spaced apart lower base flanges 48 (see FIGS. 9 and 10). As illustrated in FIG. 10 the initial width of the stop is greater than the width of the header channel within which it is inserted. However, by pushing the stop upwardly until its upper base 46 makes face to face contact with the base of the header channel, the legs of the stop are compressed inwardly between the channel legs so as to exert an outward spring pressure on the channel legs which frictionally holds the stop in place. By properly locating the stops within the header channel, they can be easily removed when it is desired to remove the door panel by sliding the door panel to a position where the stops are clear and can be reached and pulled downwardly. Otherwise, the stops prevent the door panel from being lifted upwardly within the header channel.

While the lock is illustrated as being arranged for vertical bolt movement, it can be turned sideways so that it operates in the horizontal plane, with the keeper accordingly located. For certain types of window constructions, this is a better and more practical location of the lock.

Having fully described an operative embodiment of this invention, I now claim:

1. A lock comprising a one-piece housing formed of a vertically elongated, generally rectangular in cross-section, rearwardly opening, open ended, thin wall channel part, and a rearwardly open, vertically arranged box-like base part, having thin upper and lower and side Walls and a forward base wall, with the chnnel part approximately centered on said base wall and the free edges of the legs of the channel part being integral with said base wall, and said base wall being opened between said legs so that the channel opens into said base;

a vertically arranged, elongated slide bolt of a crosssection corresponding to the shape of said channel and slidably fitted within said channel part for endwise sliding movement therein, and extending above and below the open ends of the channel part, with hand gripping means formed on the lower end of said bolt;

a thin, fiat plate fitted within said base between the walls thereof in face to face contact with the base wall, and having a vertically extending, struck-out, forwardly bent out narrow springy tongue extending into, and closely fitting in the sidewise direction, an elongated groove formed in the rearward face of the slide bolt for frictionally holding the bolt in set positions within the channel and against sidewise movement.

2. A lock as defined in claim 1, and said channel part extending above and below the base part, and with the upper and lower walls of the base part having openings therethrough aligned with the channel and base wall openings, and said plate having upper and lower extensions extending through said wall openings and covering the channel open portions located above and below the base part.

3. A lock as defined in claim 2, and including screw receiving holes formed in said plate and base wall and extending through an aligned, forwardly extending boss formed integral with a side wall of the channel part, and a screw extending through said holes for fastening the plate to the base and thus clamping the bolt in the channel part; and means on said base for fastening it to a support.

4. A sliding bolt lock for fastening a moveable element to a fixed element, with the lock mounted upon one of the elements so that its bolt engages a bolt receiving keeper mounted upon the other element, comprising:

a one-piece housing formed of a box-like base, having a forward wall, upper and lower walls and side walls and being rearwardly open, wherein the base may be secured to its element with the free edges of said upper, lower and side walls in contact with said element;

an elongated, approximately rectangularly shaped, rearwardly opening channel centered upon and lengthwise extending beyong the opposite ends of said forward wall, with the free edges of the channel legs integral with said forward wall, and an opening formed in said forward wall corresponding to the channel opening so that the channel opens into said box-like base along its length;

an elongated, slide bolt of a cross-section corresponding to the cross-sectional shape of the channel, and closely fitted into said channel for endwise sliding therein;

a thin, fiat plate, fitted within said base, between the walls thereof, in face to face contact with the forward wall, and having a central, forwardly, struckout, springy tongue integral therewith and extending into a groove formed in the rear face of and extending along the length of the bolt for spring holding the bolt in position within the channel.

5. A construction as defined in claim 4, and including a keeper formed of an elongated, narrow, flat strip for securement in face to face contact with the other element; said keeper having an approximately centrally located box-like raised socket forming portion integral with and extending a distance from the exposed strip face towards the bolt for receiving the end of the bolt; the opposite end portions of the strip being tapered from the exposed face towards the contacting face thereof to form a ramp for camming the bolt endwise away from the keeper;

a screw receiving opening formed through the strip between each end thereof and the socket for receiving a mounting screw WhOSe head is exposed and extends from the exposed face of the strip, for further camming the bolt endwise away from the strip;

and a sloped fin formed integral with the strip exposed face and the socket on each side of the socket and sloping away from said exposed face towards the socket for still further camming the bolt endwise, thereby preventing the bolt from being knocked sidewise' in the event it first engages the keeper in a sidewise direction.

6. A construction as defined in claim 4, and said lock being mounted upon a sliding panel, whose lower edge is supported upon a lower fixed track and whose upper edge is fitted within an elongated, downwardly opening channel member, with the base of the channel member located a distance above the panel so that the panel may be lifted upwardly into the channel member for disengaging its lower edge from the track and for subsequent removal of the panel from the channel member;

and a stop member fitted in the channel above the panel to restrain the panel against upward movement into the channel;

said stop member formed of a thin, springy sheet bent into a short length, trapezoidal prism shape, whose upper base is arranged in contact with the base of the channel member, whose lower base is formed of a pair of spaced apart inwardly directed flanges, and whose side walls are compressed between the channel member walls so that the lower edges of the side walls springily press outwardly against and frictionally secure to the channel member side walls.

7. A stop for preventing removal of a horizontally slidably panel having its lower edge slidably mounted upon 6 a guide track and its upper edge fitted within an elongated, downwardly opening, upper channel whose base is spaced a distance above the upper edge of the panel, comprising:

a thin, relatively stiff, but springy sheet, bent into the shape of a short length, trapezoidal prism, whose lower, larger base is formed with an opening extending the length thereof;

with the prism being of a dimension to be fitted within the upper channel with its upper, smaller base in face to face contact with the base of the upper channel and with its sides compressed between and the lower edges of the sides pressing outwardly against the legs of the upper channel, so as to frictionally hold the stop within the channel;

whereby the panel may not be raised upwardly off its lower guide track, thus preventing removal thereof.

8. A stop as defined in claim 7, and said stop upper, small base being formed slightly downwardly concave along its length for producing a resisting spring force upon the sides of the stop when they are compressed inwardly between the channel legs.

9. A lock keeper for receiving the bolt of a slide bolt type lock, comprising:

an elongated, thin, flat, narrow strip having a contact face for contacting against a support surface and an opposite exposed face, with the opposite end portions of the strip being chamfered to slope from the contact to the exposed face;

a centrally located socket formed of an open box-like portion whose base is integral with said exposed face and which extends a distance away from said exposed face to provide a bolt receiving socket arranged perpendicular to the base;

a screw receiving hole formed through the strip on each side of the socket between the ends of the strip and the socket for receiving a headed fastening screw whose head forms a bump upon the exposed face;

and a narrow fin on each side of the socket, aligned with the longitudinal axis of the strip, and integral with the exposed face and the socket and having an exposed sloping guide edge which slopes from the exposed face to the free edge of the socket portion;

wherein a slide bolt moving sideways in the length direction of the keeper will be endwise cammed away from the keeper by contact with a chamfered end of the strip, then the screw head and finally the fin so that the bolt may be moved into endwise alignment with the socket.

10. A lock keeper as defined in claim 9, and wherein said socket portion is formed of a pair of approximately square, open end boxes, each having four walls, namely, side walls aligned with the respective side edges of the strip, and end walls transverse to the strip, with the adjacent transverse walls of the two boxes being apart only a slight distance.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 305,103 9/1884 Newton 189-28735 X 1,881,760 10/1932 Loucks 189287.35 2,312,892 3/ 1943 Fisher 292340 2,937,416 5/1960 I-Iiers 70100 X 3,085,300 4/ 1963 Carleton 292-150 X 3,589,152 6/1971 Glass et al. 7086 FOREIGN PATENTS 548,971 11/ 1922 France 292l47 ALBERT G. CRAIG, JR., Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

